Obama team monitors events in North Korea

The Obama administration has no new worries about North Korea's nuclear program, and reports that it is too early to say whether Kim Jong Il's death portends a new relationship between Washington and Pyongyang.

"I don't think we have any additional concerns beyond the ones that we have long had with North Korea's approach to nuclear issues," said White House spokesman Jay Carney. "And we will continue to press them to meet their international obligations. But we have no new concerns as a result of this event."

As for future relations between the United States and North Korea, Carney said, "I think it's much too early to make any kind of judgment like that."

"This is a period where North Korea is in a period of national mourning," Carney said. "And we hope that the new North Korean leadership will take the steps necessary to support peace, prosperity and a better future for the North Korean people, including, as I say, acting on its commitment to denuclearization."

In the meantime, Carney said, the United States is monitoring events in North Korea:

Our focus is on coordinating closely with our allies and partners.

We have reaffirmed our unwavering commitment to the stability of the Korean Peninsula and the security of our allies South Korea and Japan. The president, as you know, has had a very close working relationship with (South Korean) President Lee (Myung Bak) and spoke to him late last night.

In addition to that communication, Secretary (of State Hillary Rodham) Clinton, (Defense) Secretary (Leon) Panetta, National Security Adviser Tom Donilon -- they have all spoken to their counterparts in the Korean government, as has our team on the ground, including our ambassador and the head of U.S. Forces Korea.

Secretary Clinton is meeting today with the Japanese foreign minister, and we have also consulted closely with a wide range of our Japanese colleagues. In addition, we are in touch with Russia and China, the two other members of the six-party talks beyond North Korea.

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

USA TODAY is now using Facebook Comments on our stories and blog posts to provide an enhanced user experience. To post a comment, log into Facebook and then "Add" your comment. To report spam or abuse, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box. To find out more, read the FAQ and Conversation Guidelines.

Approval ratings, 1945-present

About David Jackson

David's journalism career spans three decades, including coverage of five presidential elections, the Oklahoma City bombing, the 2000 Florida presidential recount and the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He has covered the White House for USA TODAY since 2005. His interests include history, politics, books, movies and college football -- not necessarily in that order. More about David